Tips on Making Estimated Tax Payments

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If you don’t have taxes withheld from your pay, or you don’t have enough tax withheld, then you may need to make estimated tax payments. If you’re self-employed you normally have to pay your taxes this way.

Here are six tips you should know about estimated taxes:

1. You should pay estimated taxes in 2014 if you expect to owe $1,000 or more when you file your federal tax return. Special rules apply to farmers and fishermen.

2. Estimate the amount of income you expect to receive for the year to determine the amount of taxes you may owe. Make sure that you take into account any tax deductions and credits that you will be eligible to claim. Life changes during the year, such as a change in marital status or the birth of a child, can affect your taxes.

3. You normally make estimated tax payments four times a year. The dates that apply to most people are April 15, June 16 and Sept. 15 in 2014, and Jan. 15, 2015.

4. You may pay online or by phone. You may also pay by check or money order, or by credit or debit card. If you mail your payments to the IRS, use the payment vouchers that come with Form 1040-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals.

5. Check out the electronic payment options on IRS.gov. The Electronic Filing Tax Payment System is a free and easy way to make your payments electronically.

6. Use Form 1040-ES and its instructions to figure your estimated taxes.

Additional IRS Resources:

Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax
Estimated Tax – frequently asked Q & As
Tax Topic 306 – Penalty for Underpayment of Estimated Tax
IRS YouTube Videos:

Estimated Tax Payments – English | Spanish | ASL
IRS Podcast:

Estimated Tax Payments – English | Spanish

This entry was posted in 1040-ES, deductions, dependent, donation, estimated, exemption, farm, farmer, farming, income, Income Tax, installment, IRS, IRSenEspanol, itemize, medical expense, payment, payments, Podcasts, Publication 505, records, tax, Tax Advice, Tax Info, Tax Topic 306, wages, withholding by tlcfinancial. Bookmark the permalink.

About tlcfinancial

Sharol Lehnertz is an Enrolled Agent with the authority to practice before any level of the Internal Revenue Service granted by The Department of the United States Treasury President of TLC Financial, Sharol is responsible for accounting, tax preparation and resolution services for the firm’s clients. Her Bachelor’s Degree in mathematics and post-graduate studies in accounting and tax law includes an enrolled agent designation obtained after a comprehensive 16-hour examination by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Her experience ranges from assistant controller of a large metro newspaper, management of a tax preparation office and as a tax compliance officer for a large property management firm. Her organizational and communication skills, coupled with expertise in business tax and accounting methods, make her the ideal resource for businesses that want to succeed and grow. She has developed a special service for the firm’s clients that provides a group of CPA trained consulting professionals as temporary CFOs allowing new companies to afford the highest levels of accounting assistance and planning at very reasonable cost. Though armed with a long list of credentials that underscores her value to any client’s business, it’s her attention to the human aspects of business that makes those credentials effective. She embraces the client’s needs as her own and becomes the outside source of encouragement that is honest and genuine. She will be blunt with a client about their business when necessary and protective when outside bureaucracies get in the way of a client’s success. Excuse the pun, but with Sharol, you get Tender Loving Care - personal attention that counts.